Danbury teachers, officials approve revised contract

Published 1:00 am, Tuesday, March 10, 2009

DANBURY -- Union members and city officials overwhelmingly endorsed a revised teachers contract Tuesday that could save the city about $1.2 million in the next fiscal year.

Members of the
National Education Association of Danbury
, which represents about 830 teachers, accepted the revised agreement during a vote Tuesday. About 90 percent of the bargaining unit voted in favor of it.
"I think the members realized that the economic times are bad, and that it's probably the best we could do without going into arbitration," union president
William Murray
said about the contract, which calls for a three percent raise each year for the next two years.
A previous agreement approved by the

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Board of Education
but rejected by the
Common Council
called for increases of about 4.5 percent.
The revised contract, which was discussed during a mediation session last week, has concessions similar to those accepted by six other city unions.
The contract calls for the raises to be split into two installments, with the first coming in July of each year and the second in January, according to school finance director

Elio Longo
.
He added that the agreement will save the city about $1.2 million in the first year and about $500,000 over the two-year period of the contract.
The agreement was accepted unanimously Tuesday by both the Danbury Board of Education and the Common Council.
School board chairwoman
Susan Podhajski
said the concessions could not have been reached if it weren't for the guidance and support of Mayor
Mark Boughton

during the mediation process.
She added, however, that acceptance of the concessions doesn't guarantee there won't be more layoffs in the school system than the 24 already expected.
It depends, Podhajski said, on whether the city decides to fund the board's requested three percent budget increase, from $112 million to $115 million.
When asked by council member
Benjamin Chianese
if the city could afford the contract, Boughton told the stunned audience "No."
"We are facing an unprecedented tidal wave," he said about the economy. "While I don't feel comfortable with increases in any department right now, I believe this is the best deal the city can get.
"My problem is that I don't know if we can get to $115 million," Boughton said referring to the education board's budget request.
Council Minority Leader
Thomas Saadi
asked school officials, in light of the concessions made by the teachers union, if administrators would be willing to give back any of the 4.5 percent increase they won in an arbitration process in January.
School superintendent
Sal Pascarella
said the discussions on voluntary givebacks by the administrators has already begun.
"They are very open to that conversation," he said.

The revised teachers contract Includes three percent raises for each of the two years that will come in two installments, in July and January. Will save the city $1.2 million in the first year and $500,000 over the two-year period. Health benefit concessions, including increased copays and contributions, will take effect the second year of the contract. The previous contract called for health benefit concessions to start in the first year and salary increases of 4.5 percent annually.